Old Things
by marcelb
Summary: Continuation of Duped. This is one half of two parallel running stories. This story has the women dealing with a past problem.
1. For His Love

**Title:** Old things part 1: For His Love  
**Author:** Marcel Bestebroer  
**Timeline:** Right after 'Duped', AU after Promises in the Farscape universe as we know it.  
**Archiving:** Name the place.  
**Disclaimer:** I own the plot idea, but that's basically it.

**Notes:** This trilogy is part of the Duped universe, starting directly after the original story and runs parallel to the trilogy _New Things_. As a consequence the first part of both trilogies will have uncanning similarities in dialogue and scenes, though written from opposing points of view (so as not to be completely boring). The same holds true for the last part of both trilogies, though there the number of similar scenes and dialogues is limited to a minimum.

* * *

Closing the comms she silently cursed. The communication she had just received, though requested by her, had given her reason to ignore the original task. It might end her career, but she felt it would be worth it. But couldn't and shouldn't do this alone. She needed help and she knew exactly were to get it too.

* * *

Chiana awoke to D'Argo's arms tightening around her, and she smiled, comfortable in the fact that their relationship was beginning on the road to recovery. She was glad he had forgiven her for her betrayal with his son. She would not make a mistake like that again. 

She realized D'Argo had changed as well, not even once talking about living a quiet life on a farm and marrying her. That was another thing she was happy about: he accepted her the way she was and quite possibly making her love him even more.

Chiana looked at him again and stroked his face with her hand. She really must have exhausted him if he didn't even awaken at the touch. She decided to let him sleep some more while preparing first meal, just for him, both a surprise and a token of her appreciation for his forgiveness and acceptance.

Carefully she moved his arm away to allow herself get out of his embrace and out of the bed. Once out of the bed she looked once again at him and gave him a tender kiss. She then quietly put on her clothes and gracefully slipped out of the room of her lover.

* * *

Aeryn awoke in John's arms in his bed. Her mouth immediately formed a smile at the mere thought of waking up next to him in his bed. She had really missed John and the past few days with the bioloid version had made things only worse, especially his rejection of her.

But last night, after John's rescue, she went with him to his quarters, promising to never leave him again. The love making had been almost identical to the first time with the John aboard Talyn so many monens ago. It amazed her how gentle and giving this man could be.

Her plan had been to give him all of her, help him deal with the monens of not having seen her, apologize for her cold behavior when she returned to Moya after the other John had died and for the monens he spent in the virtual environment, but John would have none of it. Instead he focused all his actions on pleasuring her in exactly the same way the other one had done that first night aboard Talyn: painfully slow with gentle kisses and caresses, giving much more than taking.

Frell, was it getting hot in here? She gently caressed his face and kissed him on the chest. Sensing no reaction from him, she realized he must have really worn himself out last night. Deciding she could surprise him with first meal in bed, she carefully extracted herself from his embrace, put on some clothes and quietly slipped out of his room towards Center Chamber.

* * *

Chiana and Aeryn arrived at the Center Chamber at the same time. Chiana immediately got a mischievous look. "Yours worn out as well, huh?"

Aeryn smiled. "Yes, but I expected D'Argo to be able to endure much more."

Chiana grinned. "Just shows that I'm much better at wearing out my lover than you."

Aeryn shook her head. "I was just careful with him. He has endured a lot."

Chiana snorted and followed Aeryn into the galley. "You're gonna bring him first meal as well?"

Aeryn nodded. "Mmm-hmm. He was still asleep, but I am sure he will be very hungry when he wakes up."

Silently they continued to fix the trays for their lovers, choosing the best pieces of fruit and other food stuffs they could find. Aeryn looked towards Chiana. "Do you trust Sikozu?"

"I don't know. She still hangs around Scorpius, even if it's just the bioloid copy, and she still believes she's the smartest person aboard. Personally I think she's just the most annoying person aboard. And that's quite an achievement considering we have Rygel and Wrinkles aboard as well!"

Aeryn nodded, mulling over Chiana's words. "It would help John a lot if she could get that frelling neural clone out of his head. Do you think it would be wise to have her try it?"

"I don't know Aeryn. Her intentions might be good, but what if something goes wrong? What if Crichton gets stuck with her in his mind as well?"

Aeryn shrugged. "If we don't try, John is stuck with Scorpius in his mind, and from what I understand, Scorpius is not relenting much. But you think she really wants to help him?"

Chiana nodded. "Yeah, I think she does and I think she can do it too."

At that point Chiana's comms crackled to life. "Chiana, I have received a personal message addressed to you. I have transferred it to your quarters."

Chiana frowned at Pilot's message. Who would contact her with a private message? "Thanks Pilot." Chiana looked apologetically to Aeryn. "I gotta go."

Aeryn picked up the tray of food she had prepared for John and herself. "That's alright, Chiana, I have to bring this food to John anyway."

Chiana picked up her tray of food and followed the ex-Peacekeeper out of the Center Chamber.

As the two parted Aeryn turned to Chiana. "Thank you Chiana."

The gray girl smiled. "Sure, Aeryn. No problem. Now, go spoil Crichton!"

* * *

Aeryn watched John's door cycle open and noticed he was scanning the room, apparently trying to determine where she had gone. Hearing the door cycle open attracted his attention to her and he turned to lie on his side, smiling at her. "Hey."

Aeryn smiled back at him, reveling in his smile and the familiar greeting. "Hey."

"I see you got me some breakfast." John turned around further to lie on his back.

"Mmm-hmm, I thought you might be hungry." Aeryn sat the tray down beside the bed momentarily so she could join him in bed again.

John shook his head a little. "Uh-huh, you're not gettin' in here like that."

Aeryn glanced at herself. As far as she could see she hadn't made a mess of herself. She looked back at him questioningly.

"You're overdressed."

Aeryn managed to keep the laugh that was building inside. This was so typical of John; stating his intention in such a roundabout way. But they didn't have time for fun. "John, we are just going to eat, take a shower and get to work."

"Well, you can't take a shower with your, sorry, _my_ clothes on anyway, so you might as well take 'em of now."

Aeryn had to agree with his logic and proceeded to take the shirt of. Before she could pull it over her head she heard him suck in a breath and by the time she could throw the shirt on the floor his hand had cupped one of her breasts. Not long after that his mouth replaced his hand as it roamed over both her breasts alternately, while both his hands now slid down her body to dispose her of the shorts.

Aeryn gripped his head, pulling it tighter against her breast. "John, we don't have time for this." John was apparently not listening, though she could not fault him for that, seeing that her mouth was saying one thing while her actions were saying the complete opposite. Deciding they probably did deserve some additional time together, she relented and let herself be pulled on the bed while she started to caress and stroke his back. First meal and the shower could wait.

* * *

Chiana exited her quarters in deep thought. The communication was not something she had expected at all. It would take her away from Moya for a few solar days, perhaps up to a weeken, but she had made a vow to deal with this dren when the opportunity would present itself and she wasn't planning on going back on it.

There were two problems. One was getting there. D'Argo's ship could only be operated properly by the Luxan himself and she really didn't want him to come with her. Aeryn's Prowler would have to be used, as it was the next fastest ship, not counting Moya. That would mean she would have to take Aeryn with her, because it was highly unlikely the former Peacekeeper would let her fly the Prowler alone.

The other problem was Crichton. She wouldn't leave him at a time when Sikozu was going to try to get rid of the Scorpius in his head and she was sure Aeryn wouldn't either. So, there were two ways things could work out. Either Sikozu was able to relieve Crichton of the neural clone today or she would need additional items to convert the neural link and thereby delay the disposal of the clone by a weeken or so. If Sikozu would try it in the next few solar days, Chiana would just have to stay here, dishonoring the vow she had made.

Still in thought Chiana approached D'Argo's quarters just as he woke up. As she palmed the door open she noticed he had awoken and quickly schooled her expression and stance to her usual carefree appearance. "Hey, brought you some food." She walked to the bed and climbed on it. "Thought you might be hungry after last night's exercise."

"Thanks, I am hungry."

Chiana moved closer to him, placing the tray on her lap and together they enjoyed first meal in silence.

"Chiana, what was bothering you when you came in?"

Frell! He had noticed that. "Nothing's bothering me. What makes you think something's bothering me?"

"When you came in you appeared to be …not exactly here with me. You also seem a bit anxious and you were thinking again just now."

Well, wasn't that ironic? Why did he have to become so frelling aware of her thoughts and states now? "D'Argo, I... I may have to leave Moya for a while. Just to-to take care of so-some personal problems. Yeah, personal problems!" She realized she had only succeeded in appearing more anxious than before.

"I could go with you. For support."

Oh, bad idea there! She really couldn't have him around while she dealt with this dren. "No, D'Argo, this is something you shouldn't be around for. I need to do this without you."

D'Argo sighed. "Chiana, I do not like having you alone of Moya. I know you can take care of yourself, but you could get into trouble and could use some backup."

Chiana smiled and caressed his face. He really was a sweet man, trying to look out for her, but he really couldn't come. Perhaps she could make him feel less worried about her safety. "D'Argo, I won't be handling this alone. I will team up with someone I know. We both need to deal with this... problem while we have the opportunity."

He looked unconvinced. "How long will you be traveling?"

"About two solar days, a little less."

Now he looked incredulous. "Two solar days? You could not possibly expect me to let you travel on a transport pod for two solar days with no way to defend it!"

What would make him think she would take a transport pod? If Aeryn wouldn't come with her she might have to, but that was not the intention at all. "I never said I would take a transport pod. I'm going to ask Aeryn to take me in her Prowler."

He seemed to like the idea of her not traveling alone unprotected but something still bothered him. "Why can't I come with you in Lo'La, but Aeryn can in her Prowler?"

"Because you would just interfere with this thing I have to do. Aeryn might want to, but once I explain things to her, she'll let me do this."

Now he just snorted. "You expect Aeryn to leave John?"

Chiana certainly hoped she would. The prospect of traveling alone was not one she was looking forward to. "Look, D'Argo, you can argue all you want, but I'm going to do this without you. If I need to I will take a transport pod. It would only take me half a solar day longer."

That seemed to finalize things for him. At least he stopped complaining. "Alright, Chiana, I will stay here. When will you leave?"

"Right after I talked things through with Aeryn. I think we'll have some time of our own though." Yeah, pretty sure Aeryn is spoiling Crichton right now, so enough time there. And Sikozu might be having a blast with fek-face as well. Wrinkles and frog-face were on their way to buy some maps. So, there was no reason why she and D'Argo couldn't have some fun time. D'Argo seemed to have come to the same conclusion.

* * *

Aeryn leaned against John, breathing hard after their latest love making in the shower. It had been absolutely wonderful in bed earlier, with John allowing her to lead. After finally eating the food she brought she had told him she was going to take a shower. Of course John had followed her and of course taking a shower together had led to another bout of love making.

Still leaning against him she remembered back to the times on Talyn, times when these kinds of mornings had been common. 'Frelling like bunnies' had John called it then. She still had no idea what 'bunnies' were, but she got the impression they were frelling a lot.

Finally she gained control of her breathing and her thought processes had returned to the here and now. "John, we really should get dressed and go to command. There are still things we need to discuss with the others."

He sighed. "Yeah, I know. We still have to see how to get rid of Harvey." He walked out of the refreshing chamber to get a towel. Aeryn admired him from behind for a little while before following him out and accepting the towel he held out for her. "Aer, can I ask you something?"

Slightly startled by the unexpected question she looked at him. "Sure."

"How..." He seemed to be struggling with how to ask the question he wanted to ask. "Where would you have to go to... you know, get junior growing?"

Aeryn didn't know what to say. Though she knew she had a child in stasis inside her, she hadn't really thought about having it released. Sure, she knew where she would need to go to release the stasis, but was John asking this out of curiosity or did he actually want the stasis released? Aeryn shook her head mentally; 'one problem at a time' she told herself. "The only ones that would be able to release a stasis are Peacekeeper med techs."

"So, we would have to pay a visit to the good doctor of a Command Carrier?"

She nodded.

He seemed to find that a less than a bad situation, judging by the change in his facial expression. "Are you... would you like the stasis to be released?"

Now he looked hopeful and Aeryn now understood he really wanted her to have this baby, even without knowing who the father was. "I do."

He beamed at her. "Then maybe we should see what we can do about that after we dealt with Harv." He took a small step towards her and gave her gentle kiss. "Let's get dressed and go see how the kids are doin'."

While putting on her clothes something occurred to Aeryn. "John, what do we say to the others when we go away to release the stasis?"

He shrugged. "Just that you got a bun in the oven and we need a tech to make the oven burn, I s'pose."

Aeryn sighed and gave him an exasperated look. Sometimes John could be totally incomprehensible.

"We tell 'em you have a child in stasis and we're going to get a med tech to release the stasis so the baby can grow."

Seemed very straight forward but Aeryn wasn't sure if she wanted the crew to know.

John apparently sensed her uncertainty. "Unless you don't want them to know. Of course once the stasis is released, they'll probably find out soon afterwards."

That was true, wasn't it? They would find out anyway so she really had no reason to try to hide the truth from them. "You're probably right." She strapped her pulse pistol to her thigh at the same time John strapped Winona to his.

He looked at her, grinning. "Ready, Sundance?"

She nodded at her crazy Erpman and led the way to Command.

* * *

D'Argo and Chiana entered an empty Command. Chiana looked at D'Argo. "Told you we'd still have time."

"Not much, Pip."

Chiana turned around to see John and Aeryn entering Command. She immediately went to John and gave him a hug. "Hey, old man."

"Mornin' Pip" He kissed the top of her head. "Do I need to ask what you were planning to do with the extra time you thought you had?"

Chiana grinned. "Nah, you know me; just wanting to have some more fun."

John smiled and looked to D'Argo. "Yeah, that's what I thought. But sometimes we have to do something serious."

Chiana immediately remembered her upcoming task away from Moya. If John would just stop for one moment speaking, she might have been able to have that conversation with Aeryn she really needed to have first. Unfortunately the human just kept on talking.

"Speaking of which, I though we had made an appointment for me with the Exorcist?" He looked at D'Argo. "Have you seen Sputnik?"

"No, Chiana and I came to Command directly from my quarters." D'Argo palmed his comms. "Sikozu, could you meet us in Command?"

"I will be there in half an arn. I have almost finished my survey of the neural interface."

"Alright, join us in Command when you have finished."

Chiana knew this was the perfect opportunity to have that talk with Aeryn. "Aeryn, could I talk to you in private?"

Aeryn was surprised by the request. Chiana was hardly the person to keep things private. "We could go to my quarters?"

Chiana nodded. "That would be alright." Not wanting to waste any time, Chiana led the way out of Command, trusting Aeryn to follow her.

* * *

Aeryn was sitting on her bed in silence, watching the Nebari girl pacing back and forth in front of her, listening to her. She completely understood why Chiana wanted to do this, frell she would help her if she could get away, but why did Chiana tell her this?

"So, I wanted to ask you to take me there in your Prowler but only if Sikozu has removed the neural clone from Crichton or if she doesn't have all the components she needs."

Aeryn contemplated the request. There was a very compelling reason to take Chiana were she needed to go, but the prospect of leaving John for any amount of time was daunting. Still, Moya would be traveling through Tormented Space soon and no Peacekeepers or Scarrans would be traveling there. Relative safety and D'Argo would remain with John. "Alright, Chiana. If Sikozu removes the neural clone from John today, I will go with you. But I will not leave John while that neural clone is still in his head."

Chiana sat down beside the former Peacekeeper. "Yeah, I understand why you wouldn't want to leave him in that situation. But if Sikozu says it's gonna take her a weeken or more to attempt the removal, I will go. You understand why I have to do this, don't you?"

Aeryn nodded. "Yes, I do." She stood up. "I think it's time to get back to Command. I'm sure Sikozu has finished her inventory by now."

Chiana also stood up. "Yeah. I hope she can deal with the neural clone today."

* * *

As Aeryn and Chiana entered Command, they noticed Sikozu and Scorpius had arrived but that John was no longer there, causing Aeryn to worry about him. "Where's John?"

D'Argo faced her briefly. "He went to talk with Pilot and Moya. I think he needed a distraction to keep the neural clone away. I've just commed him to let him know Sikozu is ready. He should be here soon."

"I'm here."

Before Aeryn had a chance to turn around, John was standing next to her, his arm wrapped around her waist. She leaned further into him, needing his comforting warmth.

"So, Sputnik, you got everything we need?"

Aeryn noticed Sikozu's attention had been firmly directed at Scorpius, but she diverted it long enough to look both of them in the eye. "The device has been altered to link to your mind, but I can not guarantee I will be strong enough to expel the neural clone."

Aeryn contemplated this development. The Kalish girl was maybe not strong enough, but perhaps she could use the device herself to help John. "Could I use the device to link with John?" She noticed the hitch in his breathing, momentarily confusing her. Was he not happy it would be her instead of the Kalish?

Sikozu just nodded. "It is probably better if it would be you. Your bond with Crichton is much stronger than anyone of us."

Aeryn noticed the tension building in John.

"Wait, wait."

Why was he interrupting? Didn't he want this?

"I'm not going to let Aeryn jeopardize her life."

Aeryn turned to John. "John, what's wrong? Don't you want this?"

He looked at her a moment before turning to the rest of the crew. "Sorry guys, but I'd like to have a word with Aeryn in private, if you don't mind." As the others indicated to have no problem with it, he pulled her with him out of Command.

Halfway in the corridor Aeryn halted him. "John, why are you resisting this? Are you uncomfortable with me invading your mind?"

"God, no Aeryn, you can come into my mind any time, just as long as Harvey's not there."

If that wasn't the problem, then why would he resist this? Hmm, he said she could come in his mind but only when the neural clone wasn't there. He was afraid the neural clone would do something to her! "John, Harvey will not be able to harm me in any way."

"We don't know that for certain!"

"No, we don't, because you haven't allowed Sikozu to explain the device to us. We don't even know how we are supposed to remove the clone because you had to interrupt her." Aeryn had to fight herself to regain control over her anger again. She loved John more than anything else, but sometimes he could be so irrational and stubborn.

Still focusing on John she could see he his next argument why he thought it would be the wrong thing to do. "No, John, this is not about the baby, or me. This is about releasing you from that frelling clone and if Sikozu says I'm the best choice to help you, I will do whatever she says I need to do."

Aeryn smiled inwardly as she heard John sigh. He had accepted that she would be the one to remove the frelling clone, although he did attach some conditions before he would allow her too.

"Alright, if Sikozu can assure us the clone won't be able to harm you or defect to your head, you can come trot around my brain."

That was acceptable. Aeryn knew that Sikozu, having been in the same situation as John, would have done her best to help John get rid of his invader while minimizing the danger she'd be in. Besides, Aeryn was looking forward to spend some time in John's mind. It was the ideal opportunity to learn more about his life on Earth, meet his family. Aeryn was certain that once the clone had been removed, John would love to show her his past. Perhaps they could keep the device afterwards, allowing her to see all of his past, gain some understanding of the strange sayings he kept uttering.

"Aer, you OK?"

"Yes John, I'm fine. I was thinking about being linked to your mind. Perhaps you could show me things from your past after we have removed the clone."

He considered it briefly before the smile appeared. He obviously hadn't thought about that before, but seemed to like the idea as much as she did. "Now, that could be fun. I think it's time we head back to Sputnik."

* * *

Chiana was the first to see the couple return, holding hands and Crichton nuzzling Aeryn's neck. That's when she knew they had agreed to have Aeryn enter his mind. Truthfully, she didn't understand why Crichton had reacted that way. She gave a mental shrug. It didn't really matter now.

"Alright Sputnik, tell us more 'bout the device and what Aer should do to get rid of the clone."

Chiana realized none of the others had noticed their entrance, proved by the fact they were all quite a bit startled by the sudden voice.

"The device is created as a one-way link between a biological subject and a computer core. I only adapted the computer output to provide another neural link, leaving the security implementations intact. Neural bleed back from your mind to mine or Aeryn's is impossible."

"You see, John? It is safe."

Chiana understood from Aeryn's remark that Crichton had been worried about Aeryn ending up with the clone.

"Yeah, well, you can never be to sure."

* * *

Aeryn was sitting nervously on her bed. She knew John was probably even more nervous than her, given the fact that he had requested some time alone. Aeryn was nervous, because she had no real idea on how to expel the neural clone from John's head. Sikozu had said it was impossible to determine upfront on how to achieve that goal.

"Aeryn, could I speak to you for a moment."

Aeryn look up at the Kalish and nodded her head.

"I was not truthful when I said I had no idea on how to expel the neural clone from Crichton's mind. It seemed safer not to explain the process when the neural clone could overhear."

She remembered the struggle and almost near-fatal results from this same fight over a cycle before, and was grateful of Sikozu's foresight. "I am glad you are able to tell me what to do, because I have no frelling clue."

Sikozu moved further into her room, closing the grating and privacy curtain behind her. "There are two ways to expel the neural clone. One would be to affect his death, which is not as easy as you might think. To let the neural clone die, you would need to get him in a situation that would be threatening to his life if he would be corporeal, but the situation would be equally threatening to Crichton."

"John could die because of this attempt?"

"Yes and no. Dying in this sense would mean neural death. If one perishes, or loses the will to live, the other will be in control of the corporeal form. The neural death will not be permanent until one of the two is in full control of the body."

"I see, but the first that appears to be in control is not necessarily the one that can achieve full control. Sort of a last desperate attempt?"

Sikozu nodded, surprised by the Sebacean's understanding. "That is correct. For this reason it is adamant you will have returned to your own body. You will then be able to help Crichton assert control."

"Like on Dam-Ba-Da, when Harvey made me believe he had won, while in reality he was the one losing the battle."

Sikozu looked confused. "This... happened before?"

Aeryn nodded. "Yes, to the other John." This seemed to confuse Sikozu even more. "About a cycle ago, John, Chiana and D'Argo were duplicated by a mad man. The copies of Chiana and D'Argo where killed immediately, but both John's managed to get out alive. Later the two of them got split up, and I went with the other one on Talyn, Moya's son."

Sikozu nodded. "I see. And apparently the neural clone was removed successfully from the other Crichton."

Aeryn nodded. "Yes, but not long after that, John died. But that had nothing to do with the neural clone or its removal." Aeryn paused a little, remembering the pain of losing him, before she returned to the present time. "You said there were two possible ways to remove the neural clone. What is the second?"

"The second would be to lure the neural clone into a neural cleanser. Each brain, regardless of species, will have a number of spots that act as a cleanser to remove neural irregularities. This is a dangerous task for you, as Crichton's neural cleansers will determine you to be an irregularity as well."

Aeryn contemplated this option. "And this way, the neural clone will be gone immediately, without trying to gain control of John's body?"

"Yes."

"And why hasn't the neural clone disappeared into one of the cleansing locations?"

"I assume... he is well aware of the danger they impose on him."

"And you're sure it's not because John just doesn't have such cleansing capabilities?"

"I know he has them. I have had enough time to study his bioloid version before it was destroyed. The neural cleansers are present in his brain."

Aeryn thought some more about this option. It seemed to be safest and most certain way of getting rid of the clone. "How do I recognize these cleansing areas?"

"Most of these areas will be represented by a symbolic entrance way, often indicated as being dangerous. The way this is shown is solely dependant on the host brain."

Aeryn nodded. That made sense, but would make it difficult to lure the neural clone into one of them. "Will the neural clone be able to sense my thoughts?"

"Not unless you intend him to hear. He will only learn about things you will utter inside the representation you will be in once you enter Crichton's mind. At Crichton's request, I will be in the room with you to monitor the progress from the outside. Though I will be unable to observe what is going on inside Crichton's mind, I should be able to notice if you are in trouble, hopefully disconnect you before any permanent damage will be done to you."

Aeryn nodded. A typical precaution John would want to have taken, before fully committing himself to this ordeal. It warmed her to know he was more interested in her well-being than that of his own, though it was the same for her.

Aeryn was shaken from her fond thoughts about the human by his voice coming from the comms. "Aeryn, Sikozu, could you meet me in my quarters. It's time we get this thing over with."

Aeryn palmed her comms. "Yes, John. Sikozu and I are on our way now." Deactivating the comms again, she led the way out of her quarters to John's, no, _theirs_ she quickly corrected herself. She was determined she would free John from his inner demon and after that give up her quarters and move into his, making it theirs.

* * *

Chiana and D'Argo had joined Sikozu's watch over the couple lying on the bed, both with a vacant look in their eyes.

D'Argo sighed. "How long have they been inside John's mind?"

"About one hundred microts longer than when Chiana asked me the last time." Sikozu was clearly annoyed with their insistent questioning the time it took. "As I explained before, they could be in Crichton's head for microts or arns. It all depends on how well things are going." She never let her gaze wander away from the duo, alert for any sign of trouble the Sebacean might get in.

Chiana moved even closer to D'Argo, taking comfort in his presence. She really hoped both Crichton and Aeryn would come out okay. It worried her more than she ever thought possible.

Crichton had been like a brother to her, possibly the only guy beside Nerri that wasn't out to get a quick frell from her. And she had tried to seduce him and still he hadn't. Frell, why did she have to think about that now?

She let her mind wander to woman beside Crichton. She remembered all the times she and Aeryn had not seen eye to eye, mostly because she had done something stupid. Aeryn had gradually moved to become a friend and now even a bit motherly. She never stopped looking out for her, protecting her. Chiana realized Aeryn had always done that.

Well, maybe not in the very beginning, but it hadn't taken that long for her switch to protector. Chiana laid her head against D'Argo's chest. '_Please be alright, you two. You deserve the happiness you have so recently discovered._'

D'Argo kept his gaze on his two friends as Chiana laid her head against his chest. John had been like a brother to him, a man worthy of a warriors respect. D'Argo realized this hadn't been this way all the time, even remembering he almost killed him, even though accidentally. And now this situation, where John and Aeryn had to deal with things without him there, that wasn't making him feel much better than as he did back then.

Still, letting his thoughts flow to the woman beside him, Aeryn was a warrior too, and would protect John at all cost, something that gave him more worries. If something would happen to Aeryn, John would never be okay again. It was clear he needed her, as she did him.

D'Argo sighed softly. Another thing that had bothered him. It had taken him a while to forgive Aeryn for running away, but he had understood her reasoning. She was unaccustomed to emotions, and death of a loved one is the most difficult one of all. Add to that, that she couldn't really grieve for him because this John was still alive, and it was not hard to understand why she had left. She needed rules and regulations again, if only to deal with these rampant emotions.

D'Argo was the first to notice the stir in Aeryn, followed closely by one in John. He turned his gaze to Sikozu, who seemed relieved to see the both of them stir. Before he turned his gaze back to the duo, Chiana had noticed the change too.

"Hey, you're back!" Chiana bounced away from D'Argo, straight to the couple.

Sikozu was quicker to get to them. "Did you succeed?"

Aeryn nodded slightly and looked at John, who was smiling broadly.

"He's gone. He really is gone."

This caused Aeryn to smile as well, glad to be proved again that there was no difference between the man that died and this one. "Sikozu, when Harvey vanished into the neural cleanser, just before John closed the door, an orb came out of it. Is that something we need to worry about?"

Aeryn observed Sikozu pondering the issue. "I do not think it is dangerous. The orb most likely represents memories and feelings that the neural clone had stolen from him. It might also be parts of Crichton that the neural clone had taken over, or was linked closely to. The fact that it came out of the neural cleanser indicates it was deemed a regular neural pattern for Crichton, otherwise it had been destroyed as well."

John, already disconnecting the neural link device from his head, turned to Sikozu. "Should I go back and smash it, or store it somewhere safe?"

"No, it should be absorbed by your brain automatically, in time. Besides, you would be unable to find it now. You can go back to the same representation you left the orb in, but that does not necessarily result in going back to the same physical section of the brain."

John nodded. "Right, no point in going back."

Aeryn, though disconnected from the device as well, prevented John from giving it to Sikozu. Looking at John she saw understanding dawning, before she turned to Sikozu. "Could John and I use this device more, so I could observe his memories?"

Sikozu nodded, clearly having anticipated the question. "Now that the neural clone has been removed, there should be no danger involved. It would be even possible to reverse the connections to have Crichton observe your memories, without any dangers."

* * *

Now that the couple was safe, Chiana could focus on her other task. Aeryn had indicated with a nod of her head she would go with her, especially now that Rygel and Wrinkels had returned with maps and Crichton would be safe aboard Moya in a region of space where no Peacekeepers or Scarrans would follow him.

Chiana sighed. This would be the last night for maybe a weeken that she could spend with D'Argo and she knew Aeryn felt the same way about Crichton. A smile formed as she thought about the couple taking full advantage of the device. Aeryn would soon be the only one to understand Crichton's weird sayings. And it would have other benefits as well, Aeryn learning other aspects of Crichton's past could be beneficial in the real world as well.

She finally arrived at D'Argo's quarters and palmed the door open. She could hear the shower running and she quickly closed the door and privacy curtain, before taking of her clothing. Her brave warrior was going to have to endure another long and tiring night, but she doubted he felt unhappy about that.

* * *

Finally a response had come to her message. Chiana would come. Finally she could set things in motion, prepare for this new and dangerous task. Some of the residents would not be happy with what she and Chiana were about to do, so additional preparations were to be made for her departure. She didn't care, this endeavor would have to be taken; she had made a vow.

This promised to become a long and tiring night, but it would be worth it.


	2. New Friends

Part 2 of 3

* * *

Aeryn was going over the checklist, preparing the Prowler for the upcoming journey. The entire procedure was made unnecessarily complicated by the human astronaut, who seemed determined to distract her every frelling microt he got a chance to do so.

Not that she minded his method of distraction, but considering the rather long flight to take and the purpose of this journey, she knew how important it was to make sure her Prowler was in full working order. "John, please, let me finish the preflight checks first." She might as well have talked to a wall, because he just kept on distracting her.

"Hey, I'm gonna have to live without you for a while. I gotta take every chance I can get."

Aeryn couldn't help the smile forming. She knew it would become difficult for her as well, not being with her lover for a weeken. Still, there was a compelling reason for completing these checks without being distracted. "John, if I do not do this correctly, we might get in trouble. It might prevent me from returning to you quickly."

That apparently did it because he finally backed away, leaving a cold, empty feeling inside her, as well as the portions of her body that had been pressed to his.

"Right, I'll leave you to it, then." He grinned lasciviously at her. "Can't make promises as to the length of time you get though."

Aeryn gave a short throaty laugh. "I better hurry then."

Of course she had planned to hurry anyway, and if John hadn't entered just microts after she'd started the preflight checks, she might have finished already. Still, only less than two hundred microts before she was finished, so they would have some time for... other things.

* * *

Aeryn kissed John long and hard, knowing it would have to last them both a fairly long time. A faraway corner of her brain realized it was actually the first time she'd done something like this in public, with other people around, watching. Soon that part of her brain also focused on saying goodbye to her lover. Finally they released each other, still completely in sync.

"You better come back to me."

The whispered message evoked many emotions in her, as well as some doubts. For a moment she actually contemplated saying no to Chiana, but she couldn't do that. This thing Chiana needed to do could get her in trouble and she wouldn't be able to protect Chiana if she stayed here.

So instead she smiled wistfully. "I promise I will. A weeken at most."

She turned around to climb up and into her Prowler. As she let herself slide into her seat she saw that Chiana, who had followed her to climb into the Prowler as well, had turned around to hug D'Argo tightly.

"I'll come back, D'Argo. Everything will be alright, you'll see."

Chiana wasn't sure why she felt the need to reassure him of her safety, or why the additional hug had felt so essential when she started to climb the ladder on the side of the Prowler. It sure felt good, his strong arms around her. Yeah, she had every reason to come back in one piece. She released him, and D'Argo followed her example. She turned around again and walked towards the Prowler, giving Crichton a peck on the cheek as she passed him, and climbed into the Prowler behind Aeryn.

* * *

"We should arrive in about two arns." Chiana closed the comms again. It looked like they would arrive just in time, giving them just enough time to prepare for this task, making sure to be out of sight before their target appeared.

"Well, Chi, it seems everything has been prepared perfectly." Aeryn shook her head mentally. It seemed so unlikely their contact would have been able to make such detailed preparations for a task like this.

"Yeah, I didn't expect her to be able to pull something like that off. I'm impressed." A little frown made it to Chiana's face, although Aeryn couldn't see it. "Hey, Aeryn, you do agree with me on this, right?"

Aeryn turned around momentarily, smiling at the Nebari. "If I didn't, neither of us would be here." She turned back, realizing she had actually meant it. She wouldn't have let Chiana go on her own and she was certain that between her and D'Argo, they would have found a way to prevent Chiana from leaving. "No, I know why this has to be done. I fully stand behind it and I will provide back-up should you need it."

Chiana was relieved Aeryn would support her now, but there would be another time she would need her support. "What about when we return to Moya? I haven't told anyone what we were gonna do, but if D'Argo asks, would you support me then, too?"

This caused Aeryn to frown. "Of course I would, Chiana. Why wouldn't I?"

Chiana sighed. "I haven't exactly told you everything, but I'm sure D'Argo would not agree to this. He'd probably think it's a stupid reason, nothing warranting the risk."

"Why would he think that?" This didn't make sense. D'Argo would have done this, too, wouldn't he? For exactly the same reasons they were going. Chiana stayed quiet. "Chi?"

"I'll tell you later, when all this is over." Secretly, Chiana hoped Aeryn would just forget about it.

* * *

Where the frell were they? Chiana had said two arns and that time frame had passed a quarter-arn ago. Restlessly she paced back and forth in front of the cavern she had found where Aeryn could store her Prowler out of sight. Finally she heard an engine heading her way. Must be Aeryn and Chiana. Not entirely sure that was the case, she hid herself near a corridor, allowing her to get away quickly should it be anyone other than the two people she expected.

* * *

Aeryn turned the Prowler in the direction of the landing place that would allow her to hide the Prowler. Getting closer, she saw only a mountain and had to agree that if there was an opening in it, nobody would notice it unless they were very close.

Following the given coordinates, she landed a few metras from the mountain and rolled the Prowler closer to the corner where two sides met. When she was almost on top of it she saw that part of the mountain was actually further back than the other part, far enough to allow her Prowler in between and roll into a cavern. It would be impossible to spot the opening from the air, so that left only a ground approach. Easy enough to guard against, and given the location it was highly unlikely anyone would come here that way.

Finally the Prowler was fully hidden in the cavern and Aeryn shut down the engine and navigational systems before popping the canopy open. Both Chiana and Aeryn climbed out and looked around. No sign of their contact.

Aeryn turned to Chiana. "Wasn't she supposed to meet us here?"

Before the Nebari had a chance to answer, another figure emerged from a corner.

"Chiana! Aeryn!" She practically ran to them, much to their amusement.

"Hey, Princess." Chiana hugged Jool first, actually happy to see the nixxa again.

"It's so good to see you again!" Jool gushed. Who would have ever thought that? She turned to Aeryn, realizing just in time that hugging her would be bad idea. "Aeryn, good to see you, too."

Aeryn completely surprised her by hugging her, though awkwardly. "I'm glad to see you again, Jool."

* * *

The trio was making their way through a maze of corridors that connected the cavern Aeryn's Prowler was in with one close to where Jool and the other Interions were studying the planet and its history.

"So it wasn't the real Crichton?" Jool couldn't believe the story Chiana and Aeryn had told her. "I never noticed any difference at all. He was still being his fahrbot, irritating self." The smile on her face belied her feelings for the human. She turned to Aeryn, a big smile on her face. "Hey, did you know his species and mine are actually related?"

Aeryn had to admit that she didn't, and more importantly, realized John probably didn't know this either, since the discovery of that fact had been made when the bioloid was here.

"Frell! I completely forgot to tell him about that!"

Chiana had obviously come to the same conclusion. Aeryn made a mental note to inform him about this development once they returned.

"Right, he doesn't know because he wasn't here." Jool's face momentarily fell, but soon was replaced by a smile again as she realized she had now more information to relay. "Recently we have even found proof that Sebaceans are also related, though we are still unable to determine which species was the base."

Aeryn smiled at the obvious joy and excitement Jool felt for this find. If Jool only knew she and John had already proved the genetic compatibility, that she already had 'a bun in the oven'. She almost laughed out loud at the thought. How do these humans come up with such strange sayings?

"Well, that's great, Princess, but right now I'm more interested in other information."

Chiana was getting anxious again. Jool hadn't told them how their plan was going to be put into action, or even what their plan was, exactly.

Jool's face once again became serious. "We should have a little more than an arn to prepare ourselves. I suggest you two stay out of sight until we can proceed with our plan." She grinned at Chiana. "I think you're going to like what I came up with."

* * *

"You're right, I _do_ like this plan." Chiana had a big grin on her face. "Very much so."

Aeryn also found this to be a satisfactory way to deal with this. "Jool, if the other Interions, or even the priests, find out what you did, they may put you in a holding cell."

Jool nodded. "That is why I hid an Interion ship in a cavern close to your Prowler. I will have to leave here once we are done."

"You're coming with us? To Moya?" Chiana barely managed not to add the 'To D'Argo?' that was foremost on her mind.

"If you allow me to." Jool sensed Chiana wasn't particularly happy with the prospect.

"Of course you could come with us." Aeryn had also picked up on the Nebari's aversion to Jool joining them on Moya, but couldn't understand why. Sure, the two had often fought before, but near the end and especially now they seemed to be getting along just fine.

Chiana's head whipped around to Aeryn, momentarily forgetting she had no idea Jool and D'Argo had been in a relationship.

Jool gathered from Chiana's behavior what the problem was. "I also found a man I love very much. He has already agreed to come with me, but we'll understand if you cannot afford to have two additional crew members aboard Moya. Hirsh and I can take care of ourselves, if that were to be the case."

Chiana turned back to Jool, feeling a little ashamed of herself, but mostly relieved. "Hey, you're both welcome aboard Moya."

Aeryn immediately sensed the relief in Chiana's voice and began to suspect why Chiana hadn't particularly liked the idea of Jool coming.

They were interrupted by a knock on the door. Both Aeryn and Chiana readied their weapons, causing Jool to roll her eyes and smile. "Some things just never change." She called out, "Come in."

The door opened to reveal an Interion male. "Jool, the Peacekeepers have arrived. The Commandant has requested an audience with the leader of the scientists." The male entered further into the room. "That would be you, my love." He kissed her and held her in his arms and only then seemed to notice the other two women. "You must be Chiana and Aeryn Sun. I am Hirshara Foranta Hikkor Sekha."

Both Chiana and Aeryn smiled, remembering Jool's introduction and her insistence that they use her full name whenever they addressed her. Not that anyone had.

Chiana, always up for meeting a new male, stuck out her hand as she had seen Crichton do. "Hi, Hirsch! Nice to meetcha." She turned her head to Jool. "I see we taught you well. You no longer insist on using your full name."

Aeryn also stuck out her hand to greet Jool's mate.

Hirsh laughed at the Nebari's comment. "It took her a while before she finally persuaded me to address her as Jool."

Jool shrugged. "Being called Jool all the time aboard Moya made me realize I really liked that better than my full name." She turned to Hirsh. "She has been separated from the other Peacekeepers?"

Hirsh nodded. "Yes, she is all alone and the other Peacekeepers do not expect her for at least four arns. None of them should be close by... your office."

Jool turned back to Chiana and Aeryn and grinned. "Ladies, would you please follow me? An old friend awaits us."

Both Chiana and Aeryn grinned as well, both of them looking very much forward to the upcoming arns.

* * *

"Let me inform you that the only reason I am here is because High Command has given me a direct order to do so. I will cooperate to a certain degree, but I will not tolerate neglect or unaccounted-for examinations or interrogations." Mele-On Grayza walked confidently around the office of the scientific leader.

Jool had to contain her anger and hatred for the woman. The arrogance of that tralk, to think she was in full control. But she had to admit it would be difficult to keep the other Peacekeepers away from her. She just hoped none of the other scientists or the Priests would overstep the preset boundaries, at least not before she, Chiana and Aeryn were done with Grayza.

Grayza looked more closely at Jool. "You were part of the crew of Moya, were you not? And the last time I was on Arnessk, you were here also."

Jool nodded. "Yes, you are correct. After Scorpius' Command Carrier was destroyed, I came here. After the magnetic disturbance had been lifted and the Priests were reinstated, I stayed here and became head of the expedition."

Unobserved by Grayza, Jool activated a privacy field, the disturbance preventing comms signals from entering or leaving the room. "But I have recently contacted _them_."

A hidden panel behind Jool opened and Grayza's eyes widened in surprise at seeing a very angry Chiana and Aeryn enter. She activated her comms. "Guards!"

The smirk on Jool's face told her comms were probably useless.

Grayza raced towards the door but Aeryn had anticipated it and blocked her path before taking her out with a well-placed Pantak Jab.

Jool stepped from behind her desk and moved towards the fallen Commandant. "Time to execute our revenge."

Together they moved Grayza into the adjacent surgical room. Jool turned to Chiana and Aeryn. "I suggest you go with Hirsh and check on our ships. I will complete this step alone."

Aeryn and Chiana agreed. This was one part they didn't really want to be around for and thankfully Jool had correctly anticipated that. Still, Aeryn looked Jool in the eyes.

"Are you sure you can manage?"

Jool nodded. "I've already administered a sedative, she has no comms, and is restrained. I will be quite safe. Come back in one-and-a-half arns. I should be done by then."

The two women both left through the hidden panel into the corridor were Hirsch waited for them.

* * *

Hirsch laughed. "Yes, she has quite a voice, does she not?"

"Isn't that normal for Interion females?"

"No. Most Interion females have the ability to give a shrill scream in moments of distress, but I assure you, very few have the ability to actually melt metals with their voice."

"Yeah, well, in this case it got us out of our cuffs and she and I both kicked a Peacekeeper in the gut after Sikozu... distracted them a bit."

Aeryn looked at Chiana in surprise. "Jool did that?"

Chiana nodded. "Yeah. It surprised me a bit, too. She wasn't really good at any of the confrontation stuff the entire cycle she was on Moya, and here we are and she kicks some serious eema." She turned to Hirsch. "So, how did the two of you meet?"

Hirsch started to smile, eyes soft with remembrance. "I was with the first group of Interions to arrive here. We were told the Interion already present was to be appointed as the scientific leader. I, we all, had expected to find a male, since in our culture it is unusual for a female to become a leader of any expedition." His eyes refocused on the here and now, though the smile stayed, and just a hint of pride.

Chiana cocked her head at Hirsch. "Then what about Vella? When we arrived she was in charge."

He shook his head. "Vella was not sent by the Interion Science Council. She had gone to Arnessk on her own and claimed leadership and then lied to Jool, saying the Council had made an exception and assigned her to the post. The Council never knew about her work until we were contacted about the changed situation on Arnessk, and the return of the priests."

The smile that had disappeared slowly made its way back again. "I was appointed as leader of the first arriving group and had the privilege to inform her of her new status. That was quite a difficult task once I actually met her. I became incredibly nervous just seeing her and that was before she even spoke to me, introducing herself as Jool, forgoing her full name. Just hearing her voice... well, it was quite an experience."

He grinned now. "Apparently she mistook my silence for waiting for her full name, which she promptly gave. She asked if I was the leader and, still unable to say anything, I nodded. She misinterpreted that as me being the newly-appointed leader and started to inform me of the various things she had already set in motion. She only stopped when she realized I was not really hearing what she was saying. Or maybe she stopped because my colleagues were starting to make fun of me."

"It did allow me to regain some form of control over myself and I quickly introduced myself and told her that the High Council had appointed her as the scientific leader of this expedition and that I was merely the leader of this particular group. That earned me a squeal and a hug. It is very uncommon for Interions to display any form of affection in public."

Chiana grinned. "Yeah, we taught her well. So, had she fallen in love with you, too?"

"Apparently, yes. Of course I did not notice it at all, so again I was the center of ridicule from my colleagues. Jool was the one to take the first step, and from there it grew. We exchanged a lot of our personal history and our feelings for each other grew stronger every microt we spent together."

Aeryn looked a bit worriedly at Hirsch. "How do you feel about having to leave this place? You may never be able to return to your home world."

Hirsch shrugged. "I know this is something Jool needs to do and I know what the consequences of this action will be. I love her and if she has to leave, I will go with her. I do not wish to return home or stay here without her." His face went serious again. "I suggest we keep quiet from this point. We are getting closer to the caverns with our ships and we do not want to warn anyone that might have stumbled into these places."

* * *

"Frelling arrogant bitch." Jool continued this phase of the retribution she had so carefully planned, but every time Grayza's lax face caught her eye, she had to mutter some insults at her. That frelling tralk! How dare she assault Crichton!

Luckily, Jool had acquired some surgical expertise while still on Moya, and she had continued her study in that area while she was here. One thing was for sure. The tralk would never use her... weapon against anyone else. "Filthy Peacekeeper whore."

Maybe she should stop looking at her face. It was only distracting her and this procedure was difficult enough as it was. Well, it was if one wanted to take revenge. For that the tralk had to stay alive, preferably for as long as possible.

* * *

Aeryn clearly heard voices and raised a hand to silence Chiana and Hirsch. Slowly and quietly, Aeryn made her way to the cave entrance, pulse pistol in hand.

"...definitely from our Command Carrier." The female had apparently noticed the designation on Aeryn's Prowler, indicating it belonged to the Command Carrier that first belonged to Crais, before Scorpius stole command of it from him. Some of those Prowlers would have been transferred to the Carrier commanded by Grayza after Scorpius' Command Carrier was destroyed and the designation on her Prowler must have been within the range of Prowlers that were transferred.

"Is it possible the Commandant has given secret orders? A Disruptor maybe? Or a Black Ghost?"

The female snorted at the male's suggestion, though her voice sounded less than certain. "Come on, Rasa, do you really believe the Commandant would do that and then ask us to check out the exact location where her secret operative landed?"

"You think it is a test? To determine if we are doing our job properly?"

"Possibly." The female was obviously unsure on how to handle this situation. "However, until we know exactly what we are dealing with, it is best to not mention this at all."

She rummaged though her backpack. "We will place charges at the cavern entrance. They will detonate if this Prowler tries to leave. However it unfolds, we will have done our duty. The Commandant was adamant about not being disturbed for several arns, unless we were under direct attack."

From her location Aeryn could only hear the two Peacekeepers move to the entrance and place the charges. She quietly turned around and made her way back to Hirsch and Chiana. "Hirsch, where is your ship hidden?"

Hirsch pointed to a corridor Aeryn hadn't even noticed before. "Through there."

"Alright, stay here, I'll investigate." Aeryn made her way through the corridor and waited just outside the cavern. Peeking around the corner she saw no evidence of a ship being there. Slightly confused, she looked back, thinking she might have missed a side corridor. Instead Hirsch and Chiana walked around the bend.

"I forgot to tell you I've placed a cloaking device on the ship and it is suspended from the ceiling."

Aeryn looked admiringly at Hirsch. "So no one can see it or walk into it? That's good. Alright, you two, stay here. I'll go back to the other cavern and get rid of the charges the Peacekeepers placed at its entrance. Keep quiet and remain hidden, in case they come check this one out as well."

Aeryn quickly made her way back to the other cavern. She carefully scanned it before entering, making sure no one had stayed behind. Seeing the cavern was empty except for her Prowler, she ventured in, making sure to stay in the dark shadows near the walls.

Once at the entrance, she studied the explosives. Simple charges with a field disrupting trigger mechanism. Those were easy to deactivate for someone familiar with this type. Aeryn carefully felt at the back of the charge for the button that would deactivate the fail-safe, before deactivating the main trigger mechanism. Done with that, she meticulously scanned for any other surprises the Peacekeepers might have left behind, but found none.

* * *

Jool closed up Grayza's body with a predatory smile on her face. This was an important step in assuring the success of the remainder of their plan and she was looking forward to that part, even if they would not directly witness any of it. The tralk deserved every little bit of it and then some. She completed the stitching just as Grayza woke up from her anesthesia. "Ah, you woke up. No, no, don't bother speaking. Your vocal chords will be paralyzed for at least another half-arn."

Jool grabbed the salve that would speed up the healing of the flesh. "I have taken the liberty of removing the Heppel gland. No, no need to thank me. We have plans for you, Commandant, and I had to make sure you would not be able to coerce any help from anyone. Now, just relax and wait here until Chiana and Aeryn return. Shouldn't be very long at all."

Jool, done with applying the salve, moved out of the room, satisfied that she had been able to tell Grayza that this was done in vengeance. There was no mistaking the fear in the Commandant's eyes.

* * *

"What is happening here?" Aeryn had made her way back to Hirsch and Chiana.

Chiana turned around. "Two Peacekeepers decided that, since they had completed their assignment, they could stay in this cavern and recreate." A grin formed on her face. "They're not very... inventive."

Aeryn grimaced, remembering her own "painful" encounters... "Some things they just don't teach Peacekeepers." She peered into the cavern and noticed that both Peacekeepers had mistakenly, but very conveniently, placed their clothes, weapons and comms near the corridor she was in but had apparently moved away from them. Seeing that neither of them was looking this way, Aeryn quickly darted out, grabbed the items and returned to the corridor.

Chiana barely suppressed a giggle. "What about them?"

Aeryn grinned. "Would you like to meet new people?"

As the two of them snuck back into the cavern, Hirsch slowly shook his head. These were dangerous women and, from what he had heard, Jool had become more like them. Besides a sliver of worry, he was surprised to realize he actually admired Jool, proud that she would be able to protect herself should she need to.

Aeryn and Chiana crept slowly closer to the two preoccupied Peacekeepers. Chiana's well-honed sneaking skills came in very handy and Aeryn had to admit to herself she was making more noise than Chiana. Fortunately, the two Peacekeepers were focusing too much on recreating to take notice of these soft sounds.

Chiana aimed her pistol at the male. "For frell's sake! Couldn't ya be a little more creative than that? That's about the tenth time you did that in a row! I should just shoot you for being incompetent at sex!" She heard Aeryn's chuckle. "What? Don'tcha agree?"

"Oh, I do, Chi, but you would need to shoot all Peacekeeper males if that is your standard."

"What about the females? This one didn't seem to be particularly... active."

"I'm ashamed to admit that you would need to kill them, too, for that reason."

"I'm so glad you met Crichton."

"Hmm, me, too." Aeryn sensed the male readying himself to attack Chiana. "I wouldn't, if I were you."

He glared at her. "Would you shoot at your own kind?"

"Maybe she would, but I'd kick you in the mivonks before she'd get the chance."

Chiana felt a demonstration was in order and her leg shot out, allowing her foot to land in exactly the right spot. Or the wrong one, seen from the male's perspective. Chiana turned around at the grunt from Hirsch. "Are males connected like that? I only have to kick one in the mivonks and any male around immediately doubles over in pain?"

The female Peacekeeper lunged at the Nebari but got hit by Aeryn's leg before she crossed the distance. Two Pantak Jabs made sure the two Peacekeepers were knocked unconscious. Chiana grabbed the female, while Aeryn dragged the male back to the corridor where Hirsch was waiting.

Aeryn looked around and grabbed the packs both Peacekeepers had so carelessly discarded. She rummaged through the first but did not find what she was looking for. The second pack didn't provide what she wanted, either. With a disgusted look at the still-unconscious couple, she snarled, "What kind of Peacekeeper goes around without any form of restraints?"

Hirsch, who had bravely resisted the urge to look at the naked female, turned to Aeryn. "I can help you with that."

He walked into the cavern, pressing a button on a device he carried with him. The hidden ship uncloaked and descended from the ceiling. Hirsch entered and returned a mere microts later with what appeared to be leather restraints.

Chiana smirked. "I taught Princess well." Hirsch looked decidedly unhappy about the remark, causing Chiana to burst out laughing. "That's really their purpose?"

"Chi!" Aeryn also had trouble keeping her face straight, but found she needed to admonish Chiana before Hirsch got angry. Avoiding looking in his eyes, Aeryn accepted the restraints from Hirsch and tied the two Peacekeepers together.

In the meantime, Hirsh busied himself with concealing the ship again. When he finished, Aeryn and Chiana had collected the pulse pistols and comms from the couple. "We better get back to Jool. She should be ready by now."

Both women agreed and followed him back to the complex.

"Remind me to buy the Princess some new restraints."

* * *

"For the last time: no, you cannot speak to the Commandant. She has agreed to submit herself to some tests and cannot be disturbed. The tests should be finished within the next two arns."

Jool turned around and walked back into the office of their medic, which she had temporarily designated as her office. She moved into the surgery room at the same time as Hirsch and the women returned.

Jool immediately went to Hirsch and gave him a kiss before turning to the two women. "I expect everything is still safe?"

Aeryn nodded. "It is now. We encountered two Peacekeepers who had placed charges in the cavern my Prowler is in. We captured them in the cavern your ship was in and tied them up just outside it, in the hidden corridor."

Jool noticed the grin forming on Chiana's face, and even Aeryn had trouble keeping a straight face. As she turned her head back to Hirsch and noticed he was clearly embarrassed, a thought occurred to her. She turned back to Chiana. "What did you tie them up with?"

"Hirsch was kind enough to supply us with leather restraints."

Jool sighed. "I do expect new ones."

Chiana laughed. "I already promised I would buy you some new ones."

All three women noticed Hirsch had become increasingly uncomfortable and couldn't help bursting out in laughter at the sight.

Jool was the first to regain her composure. "I am sorry, Hirsch, but you should have seen your face. It was nearly as red as my hair." She kissed him then, which seemed to help him get his mind off this particular issue in a matter of microts.

"You're done with Grayza, Princess?"

"Yes, I removed the Heppel gland so that will not help her anymore. I took additional precautions to prolong her life as much as possible. I want her to remember this for as long as possible. Normally, after removing the gland, she would only live for a few arns. I think it will now be a few monens, perhaps even a cycle."

"So, how long do we need to wait before we can complete this plan?" Chiana was getting impatient, now that revenge for Crichton was within her grasp.

"Not long at all. In fact, I suggest Hirsch should return to our ship and wait there for me. Take these comms, so I can contact you if necessary."

Hirsch accepted the comms and backed up to the corridor that would bring him to the cavern, his gaze firmly locked onto Jool. "I love you," he said softly before disappearing.

"I love you, too." Jool kept her gaze at the entrance for a few microts before turning back to the other two women. "Let's awaken the Commandant, shall we?"

* * *

Dizzily Grayza made her way through the maze of corridors, wrapped in a sheet and completely lost. The only positive thing about her current situation was that she'd gotten away from that fahrbot Interion and Crichton's friends. She had a hazy memory of the Interion explaining something about what she was about to do or had just done, but the details were unclear at this moment.

It didn't matter. Despite the dizziness, she felt perfectly alright, nothing that would indicate something was wrong physically. Grayza slowed at an intersection and looked in each direction. No indication of where she was or which way was out. She looked back the way she'd come, thinking she heard someone approaching.

Not knowing if it would be her fellow Peacekeepers or the trio, she picked a direction and stumbled on.

* * *

"What happened, Princess?" Chiana ran in between Aeryn and Jool and took a moment to glance in the direction of the latter. "I thought she was sedated?"

Slightly panting, Jool glanced back at Chiana. "How the frell should I know what happened? Yes, she was sedated and she should have been paralyzed or at least unconscious for another arn."

Aeryn looked at Jool as well. "How did she get out of the restraints?"

Jool sighed. "I had to undo them. They were in the way when I tried to remove the gland."

Chiana threw up her hands momentarily. "Well, that's just fantastic, Princess! You never bothered to restrain her afterwards?"

"It shouldn't have been necessary!" Jool calmed herself. "She should still be unconscious."

* * *

Grayza locked the door behind her and altered the locking code. They wouldn't be able to enter this place for a while, giving her more time to get away from the trio. She now knew they were the ones following her as she had clearly heard the Nebari yell at someone.

Grayza turned around to see where she had ended up. It seemed like a small village but with no apparent way out other than the locked door behind her. A snarling sound made her look in its direction. A few paces away stood three tall, unclothed creatures, glaringly male. They were a little smaller than Scarrans but otherwise looked very much like them, scaly and reptilian.

Casting about in her memory, Grayza realized she had just made matters slightly worse. These were Grizans, a brutal species, extreme sexual drive and not in the least particular about which species they would recreate with. Her gaze flicked from one to the other and she noticed there were more Grizans approaching.

Grayza let her hand slide to the spot between her breasts, intending to subdue these creatures to her will. That was when she noticed the skin there had been stitched and the Heppel was not forthcoming. At the same time, she remembered what the Interion had told her earlier. Slowly she backed up to the door but one of the Grizans grabbed her before she even got close.

* * *

Chiana cast a nervous glance to Jool as she pointed at the door. "What's in there?"

From the other side of the door they could hear Grayza's blood-curdling screams.

Jool looked extremely uncomfortable. This was not what they had planned. "Grizan habitat. Males only."

Both Aeryn and Chiana looked questioningly at her, silently asking for further explanation.

Jool swallowed, hard. "Grizans are known for their insatiable desire for sex. No female is allowed to get close to them as they will mate with females of any species, as long as the physiological differences aren't too great."

Chiana looked at the door with a hint of horror. "Can't – can't we get her out?"

Jool shook her head. "No, the Grizans would rape us as well."

"Will they kill her?" Aeryn thought it certainly _sounded_ as if they might.

Jool shook her head again. "No, they'll just... mate with her. Their keepers should come for them in a quarter-arn."

"Why is she screaming like that?"

"Grizans are a little too large for her. It's most likely painful for her."

Aeryn looked at the door again and then turned around. "Right, nothing we can do about it. I suggest we leave."

"We're just gonna leave her like that?" Chiana looked at Aeryn. "I know I wanted to take revenge, but not like this."

Aeryn shook her head. "Look, I'm not very happy about this either, but I'm not going to risk my life to help her. And Jool already said it will be over in a quarter-arn, which barely gives us enough time to escape, so there's no point in trying to alarm anyone."

Chiana looked at the door again but had to agree with Aeryn's logic. She turned around and quickly moved away from the door, wanting to leave the screams behind as soon as possible.

* * *

Jool, Chiana and Aeryn hurriedly made their way though the hidden corridors until they rounded a bend and had to retreat for cover quickly.

Aeryn cursed. "Of course they would send other Peacekeepers to investigate where the other two went. How could I have overlooked that?"

The three readied their weapons and fired back, retreating again after firing a few shots. It wasn't until the third time they returned fire that Jool saw him.

"Hirsch!" The high-pitched scream that followed it was enough to stop the Peacekeepers from shooting, opting to cover their ears instead.

Aeryn and Chiana, having anticipated Jool's scream, had dropped their weapons and covered their ears in time. They kicked down the four Peacekeepers that were standing in the way, effectively clearing the corridor.

Together the three ran to the fallen and wounded Interion male, Jool having stopped her scream. She was the first to fall on her knees next to him. "No, Hirsch. Please don't die, please don't."

Both Aeryn and Chiana dropped next to her, trying to help, but Jool fended them off, needing to hold him in her arms instead.

Aeryn heard a pulse pistol whine to life. She turned around to find it aimed between her eyes, a dench from her forehead, and sighed.


	3. Crichton's Angels

Part 3 of 3

* * *

"Throw away your weapons."

Aeryn assessed their current situation coolly. She had virtually no room to make a move, so it seemed highly unlikely she could do anything about this new development. Chiana and Jool did have the room to do something, but because she was sitting in between them and the female Peacekeeper, their reaction would only result in her death. Realizing she had no options left, she smiled as she threw away her pulse pistol and one knife. "Look, Chi, it's our new friends."

Chiana smirked as she threw away her pulse pistol and looked up at the male Peacekeeper. "How're the mivonks?"

Jool also threw away her pulse pistol, not wanting to get the other two killed. She looked at the two Peacekeepers, one male, one female, and from what she understood from the banter between Aeryn and Chiana, these must be the two Peacekeepers they had captured earlier. Not wanting to be outdone by the two women, she eyed the two mock-angrily. "What did you do to my leather restraints?"

Chiana giggled at Jool's quip. Jool had definitely grown since she had first awoken aboard Moya. She was now more able to keep a cool head when in danger.

"I suggest you keep your mouths closed, or we will shoot you where you are."

Jool raised a questioning eyebrow. "How would you do that?"

The female Peacekeeper's look of surprise was comical. "As you can see, we have two pulse pistols."

Jool eyed her back coolly. "I can see that, but I am wondering how you are planning to pull the trigger without your hands."

The female Peacekeeper looked at Aeryn, frowning. "Is she magra fahrbot?"

Aeryn shook her head. "No, she is quite smart and sound of mind." She looked the female Peacekeeper in the eyes. "You should have stayed away. This time I will kill you." She heard Jool taking in a gulp of air and quickly covered her ears with her hands.

Chiana also foresaw Jool's pending scream in time to cover her ears and watched in satisfaction as the two Peacekeepers received the full force of Jool's lovely, eardrum-shattering scream. Chiana immediately lashed out with her foot, again hitting the male in the mivonks. He didn't seem to know what to do with his hands; cover the sore spot between his legs, or his ears, or to break his fall before curling into a fetal position.

Aeryn managed to make enough room for herself to kick the female hard in the gut. As the female Peacekeeper doubled over, Aeryn locked her legs around the head that had conveniently come into range. Falling together to the ground, she managed to give it a twist that snapped the neck.

Jool stopped her scream as she saw the female dead on the ground and Chiana kicking the male in the face.

Chiana released her hands from her ears and straddled the dazed male, shoving a forearm hard against his throat. "Tell me what ya did with my friend's restraints or I kill you right now."

"I... I left them in the corridor."

"Thanks." Chiana grabbed his knife and slit his throat.

Aeryn watched as Chiana stuck the knife in the waistband of her pants and went to get their weapons back. She hadn't thought Chiana would just kill a Peacekeeper in cold blood, without even looking back. Aeryn made a mental note to keep an eye on her, make sure it wouldn't come back to haunt her friend later. "Jool, how's Hirsch?" She turned around to see Jool helping Hirsch to sit up.

Jool tilted her head towards Aeryn. "It seems he was only knocked unconscious, though I doubt he can walk on his own. Getting out of here is the first priority. I can take care of him later."

Chiana had gathered their weapons along with some of the weapons of the Peacekeepers and handed Aeryn two of the pistols, her knife and a pulse rifle. "I'll help Jool get him to their ship. You get to shoot Peacekeepers."

Aeryn nodded. "Great plan. Very straightforward."

Chiana helped Jool pick up Hirsch. "We're ready. Let's go."

* * *

"Frell."

Aeryn's muttered frustration at seeing their new problem had the two other women on alert immediately. They both helped Hirsch sit down on the floor before raising their weapons and joining Aeryn to see what exactly the new problem was this time.

"Whadda ya think, Aer?" Chiana eyed the corridor again before turning back to Aeryn. "Explosives or just warning sensors?"

"Explosives are more likely." She turned to Jool. "I don't think Grayza had any intention of allowing any of you to survive, Jool. These had to have been planned. It is highly unlikely the Peacekeepers would have taken so many with them under normal circumstances."

Jool looked at the large number of flat, circular devices attached to the corridor walls. "I can't allow them to blow up the priests, or any of the Interions."

Aeryn nodded. "I know. We'll need to deactivate them. They all seem to have temperature sensors attached to them. If we walk past, they will most likely trigger the explosive charges, or at the very least warn the Peacekeepers up ahead."

"Deactivate them?" Chiana looked unbelievingly to Aeryn. "_All_ of them?"

Aeryn smiled. "It is not as much work as you may think. All the explosives are linked to each other. If we deactivate one, giving the proper commands, all of them will deactivate at once."

"Wouldn't the Peacekeepers on the other side notice and reactivate them?" Jool thought it was highly likely they would.

Aeryn shook her head. "They might notice, but they wouldn't be able to reactivate them from their side until someone comes to find out which specific device is malfunctioning, or optionally take it out of the link chain. That one over there seems to be the main charge. Without it, they can't reactivate the sequence at all. Either way, it would take them time to get here. Standard ops would dictate one grunt and one tech would go investigate it."

Chiana grinned. "Well, a tech and a grunt shouldn't be too difficult to deal with."

Aeryn smiled, though not too comfortable with the idea of Chiana looking forward to taking out others so blithely. "Yes, but they will send more if they realize they've lost two people. Then a larger group will follow, and I am planning on evading them."

"How?"

Aeryn turned to Jool. "You know this place better than any of us. Are there alternate routes to the caves containing our ships?"

Jool contemplated the question, casting a quick glance to Hirsch to make sure he was still alright. "Only from the outside. But if we go back a short distance, to the last intersection, we could take the other corridor that leads to a section of the dig that is quite close to the two caves. The dig itself has been closed and it's unlikely the Peacekeepers would have bothered with the dig after it was closed up. It might even be difficult to get out."

Aeryn nodded in agreement. "That seems satisfactory. Right, I'll start the deactivation of the explosives." She grabbed a knife and threw it at one of the devices, hitting it just on the lower rim. Immediately one of the lights on the device faded. "Sensor disabled for that one." She looked at Chiana and Jool. "Stay here."

Aeryn moved to the explosive with the now-damaged sensor and opened it, making sure to stay out of the sensor range of the other explosives. She examined the innards of the device thoroughly. She was glad she had picked up on tech work these past cycles on Moya. It gave her much more insight into the workings of many devices, allowing her to find the proper connections to sever in order to deactivate the charges.

Aeryn took her knife and severed the first connection, relieved when nothing exploded. She quickly severed the second connection. Now the last connection, but this one had an added complication. Within five microts of disconnection, she needed to reroute it to a secondary connection point. She studied the wire closely and it seemed to be long enough to bridge the distance to the other connection point.

Aeryn took a deep breath and closed her eyes momentarily. When she opened her eyes again she grabbed the wire at its connection point. Her hand would be in the way, preventing her from seeing where she would reconnect the wire so she had to do this solely by judging the distance she had moved the wire. She inhaled once again and disconnected the wire. Now she was committed to this action; there was no turning back now. She moved her hand to the location she was sure she needed to reconnect the wire to, but had a little trouble to find the exact location. The device gave a beep every microt, increasing in pitch. Finally she found the connection point and pushed the wire into its new position. She exhaled the breath she had been holding. Frell, that was close! Just one microt left.

When Aeryn looked up she noticed the other devices were turning off one at a time.

"Judging from the pitch of those beeps, you were frelling close to gettin' us all killed."

Aeryn, startled by the sudden nearness of her Nebari friend, turned her head. Chiana was grinning so she had tried to make light of it, but her stance betrayed her nervousness. Aeryn smiled. "You don't want to know how close."

Aeryn stuck her knife in between the two power connection points, shorting it out. She closed up the device and grinned at Chiana. "Now we wait for two new friends for us to play with."

Chiana just nodded and turned around, heading back to Jool and Hirsch. Aeryn had seen the look on Chiana's face before she turned, though. She suspected the girl had started to realize she had just killed someone without conscious thought.

* * *

"This is the one." The tech put down his scanning device and rummaged around his toolkit to find a tool to open up the charge and inspect its internals.

"You better get this one working again, tech." The female grunt had an obvious distaste for techs and wasn't bothering to hide it. "This is the main charge. Without it this mission has failed, the other charges will do nothing without this one."

The male tech was apparently not one to accept being looked down upon by anyone. "I will do my job. Make sure you do yours." He closed his toolkit and attempted to open up the charge.

The female grunt grabbed him and pushed him hard against the wall. "Watch it, tech! Without me, you would be dead already. All you techs are just too weak to be real Peacekeepers. I cannot understand what High Command still keeps all of you around for." She let go of him again.

The tech just grinned at her before he turned back to the device, finally opening it up. "And what would you have done now if there was no 'weak' tech around to save your collective eemas? Just forget about this mission?"

He inspected the innards more closely. "Hmm, blown-out power supply. We will have to take one from the other charges." He moved to the neighboring charge. "So, you haven't answered my question. What would you have done without any tech in this situation?"

There was a solid thump behind him.

"Same thing she did now. Die."

The male tech turned around to see yet another Peacekeeper. This one didn't seem to be part of their team, though. His eyes fell on the lifeless body of the grunt, before he looked back fearfully at the newcomer, who radiated danger.

Aeryn didn't see any point in killing him. He wasn't a threat to them, at all. Knocking him unconscious would be the better option. She gave him a feral smile. "You're not a very good tech, are you?"

The tech looked affronted. "I am one of the best techs on this mission."

Aeryn snorted. "Perhaps you should look again at the explosive device." She pointed to the one she had sabotaged.

He hesitated slightly before making his way to the still-open device and inspecting it.

"Who did this? Not only are the safety lines severed, but the device has been purposefully rerouted so it would deactivate the others. All of them will need to be reinitialized, taking arns at least, and this one would need to be replaced with another main charge." His voice went up in awe. "That must be one good tech to come up with this solution." He regarded Aeryn speculatively.

Aeryn smiled. "I've learned quite a bit since Crais declared me Irreversibly Contaminated. I'm glad he did that, though."

"Crais? You are Aeryn Sun?"

Aeryn didn't like this development. The tech seemed a little _too_ glad to meet her. Still, she nodded in acknowledgement.

"You better leave quickly. Especially if the one called Crichton is here. I heard some special operative was aboard with the intention of killing this Crichton and anyone that was on his side."

Aeryn looked dubiously at the tech. Why was he telling her this, helping them?

"Don't look so suspicious. Crichton may be our only hope when the war with the Scarrans starts. Not everyone thinks Peacekeepers are the best force around, either. Now, get out, but before you do, knock me unconscious."

Aeryn was certain he never saw the Pantak Jab coming.

* * *

Karinta rushed to the docking bay. She'd been informed the Commandant had been severely wounded and was barely conscious. She made her way as fast as she could to the bay the Marauder was bound to land in. Not that she wanted to help the Commandant, not after what had happened a cycle earlier, but because she knew the penalty should she, as head med tech, not be there before the Marauder touched down.

No, for all she cared, the Commandant could die of her wounds. Briefly, she wondered if someone else had planned this, taken revenge. But no Peacekeeper would dare to do that. They would, in essence, be signing their death warrants with such an action. But maybe it hadn't been a Peacekeeper at all, just someone else who had vengeful feelings towards the Commandant.

Karinta shook her head, trying to dispel these random thoughts. It didn't matter, she would need to make sure the Commandant would heal and remain alive, regardless of her own hatred towards the Commandant. She arrived at the docking bay mere microts before the Marauder flew in.

Microts later, the Commandant was carried out. Karinta moved closer, intending to take a closer look at the wounds. The Commandant had regained consciousness.

"...capture Officer Sun, the lead Interion and the Nebari girl. Bring them to me, alive. I will personally execute them for doing this to me."

So it was revenge! Karinta had heard, of course, of the notorious Officer Sun. An Irreversibly Contaminated Peacekeeper who had found an alien mate. The same alien male the Commandant had... interrogated on this same planet not so long ago. The Nebari had also been part of the crew of the Leviathan ship they were on.

Again Karinta shook her head mentally. This was not the time to wallow in admiration of this nicely-executed revenge. She moved closer to the Commandant and looked under the cover. One hezmana of a lot of blood and tearing. She stuck her head above the cover. "Who was the attacker? There's a lot of damage."

"A group of Grizans."

Karinta quickly hid her face behind the cover again, afraid someone would see the smile forming on her face. Grizans! Frell, this was one very well-planned-out and brutal revenge. She wished she could have been there to watch it. Karinta was grateful the threesome had seen it fit to teach the Commandant an important lesson. For a moment Karinta saw her brother's face, but this time his face wore a smile, not the despondent look he'd had the last time she'd seen him.

Karinta moved from under the cover. "Not much I can do for her here. Bring her to the medical bay quickly." The Commandant turned to her and motioned her closer.

"They also removed the gland," Grayza said softly.

Karinta understood what she meant. She had frequently examined her and was aware of the Heppel Oil gland that had been implanted in the Commandant. Karinta also knew that removal of the gland would lead to death within arns of removal. Well, that wouldn't do. The longer the Commandant lived, the better. Ever since her brother had taken his life because of what this tralk had done, she had been dreaming of a way to remove the gland without it causing death.

Karinta knew that for someone like the Commandant, recreation was a necessity and, before the gland had been implanted, the Commandant had had considerable difficulties finding recreation partners due to her obvious hybrid status. Yes, the three women had taken their revenge and now Karinta had a chance to prolong the suffering of the Commandant.

* * *

Aeryn grunted as she pushed though the last obstacle in their path. She looked back at the others, noticing Hirsch had at least stayed conscious and was even regaining mobility. "Alright, stay low and quiet. I'll do some reconnaissance." She quietly and quickly moved out of the entrance of the cave, staying low to the ground. She had a reasonably good idea of which direction they needed to go and spotted a nice location to remain out of sight and still have a good overview of most of the area.

Lying flat on her stomach Aeryn carefully peered over the edge, quickly making an inventory. One Marauder, four Prowlers in the open, five Peacekeepers near the entrance where her Prowler was hidden. There didn't seem to be anyone near the other cave that should harbor Jool's ship. Just as she wanted to retreat she saw her Prowler rolling out of the cavern and she silently cursed. She cursed again under her breath as she saw her Prowler lift off, accompanied by one of the other Prowlers.

Aeryn moved away from the edge at the same time the other three arrived. She turned to Chiana. "I hope you didn't leave anything important on my Prowler. They just flew away in it."

Chiana shook her head. "No, took everything with me. Sorry 'bout your Prowler, though."

Aeryn shrugged. "It was in need of proper maintenance anyway. I will just have to take one of the other Prowlers." She looked at Jool. "There are a number of Peacekeepers near the entrance of the cave my Prowler is... was hidden in, but the one where your ship is, is not being guarded. Can we get to it from here without being detected?"

Jool thought about the situation, looking around and even taking a short peek over the edge herself. "It's not going to be easy. The entrance to that cave lies in direct sight of the one with our ship. Their attention needs to be diverted."

Aeryn was in deep thought. How the frell are they gonna divert them?

Chiana, done with her turn of peeking over the edge, giggled. "Hey, I know how I can divert their attention."

Aeryn looked at her, seeing that despite the little laugh, Chiana was indeed serious about the comment.

Chiana looked back at Aeryn. "Hey, I... I know I can reach the... the Marauder without being detected. I can. I also know how to use its weapons."

Aeryn shook her head. "The pilot will have remained aboard."

Chiana held her pulse pistol up high. "I have this. I'll be on that pilot before I get detected. Trust me. When I'm in control of the Marauder, I can simply shoot just above the entrance and it'll collapse."

Aeryn realized they didn't really have any other options, but sending Chiana out alone, with no way of providing adequate defenses should things go wrong, was not a much better option. Plus, she might need to kill another one, and while certainly not the first time Chiana would have had to kill a Peacekeeper, it was clear to Aeryn she was already having difficulty dealing with the earlier kill. Adding yet another one so soon would probably compound the problem. Aeryn sighed. It was the only viable option they had.

"Alright." She grabbed her friend before she moved. "Be careful, alright? I don't want to have to explain to D'Argo why you died."

Chiana grinned. "Don't worry, Aer. You know I can do this. Nobody is as snarky as me."

"I think you mean sneaky, Chiana."

"Sneaky, snarky... whatever."

Aeryn smiled as Chiana moved away, back in the direction they had come from. Chiana was right, she was very good at sneaking around undetected, but Aeryn hoped Chiana wasn't overconfident of her skills. Aeryn turned around to Jool and Hirsh. "Is there a way we can get closer to the ground and the cave without the Peacekeepers detecting us?"

Jool nodded. "Yeah, just through there. It's pretty steep but we'll be completely hidden from view."

Aeryn inspected the steep path down. It seemed to be a reasonably smooth and solid surface, with the mountain wall on the right side and a ledge at the left high enough to hide them from view, but low enough for Aeryn to look over every now and then to see if Chiana was still undetected. She turned back to Jool. "Do I need to help with Hirsch?"

Hirsch shook his head. "No, I will be fine with Jool. You should stay in front and make sure the path is safe."

Aeryn nodded her head, glad he understood sound tactics. She turned around and started to descend.

* * *

Karinta was impressed. Whoever had removed the gland had done a very good job. The Commandant would have lived for monens at least. But she knew how to prolong that lifespan even further. The Commandant would be able to live many more cycles, cycles in which recreation would not be so easy; if she would even ever desire recreation, of course. Karinta had been informed the Commandant was found naked amongst a group of twenty or so Grizan males, trapped in their holding pen for an unspecified period of time.

That was another thing the Commandant would be living with. Now she'd know how most, if not all, of the males who... whose services she had made use of felt like afterwards. Karinta quickly completed the procedure that would prolong the Commandant's life and only then set to work to take care of the other damage.

* * *

A smile played on Chiana's lips. It had been incredibly easy to make her way to the ground and behind the Marauder without detection. She made sure the landing struts of the Marauder were at all times between her and the cave entrance, just in case one of the Peacekeepers would look this way and actually pay attention. Just a few more motras and she'd be at the back of the Marauder, hopefully able to use the rear maintenance access hatch.

Once at the back of the Marauder, Chiana changed her mind about the maintenance access hatch. In all likelihood, it was equipped with a sensor and opening it would alert the pilot. She was better off taking a chance boldly walking up the boarding ramp and the still-open hatch the unit had used, even with the risk of being detected by one of the Peacekeepers.

* * *

Aeryn peeked over the ledge again and saw Chiana had made it to the rear of the Marauder. It was obvious the Nebari was contemplating using the maintenance access hatch. Aeryn was relieved to see her discard that option in favor of audaciously entering through the main access hatch after checking to be sure no Peacekeepers were standing near the cavern entrance at the moment to spot her.

Without taking her eyes off the openings where any likely trouble would manifest itself, Aeryn whispered to her companions, "Chiana has entered the Marauder. Get ready to go to your ship when I give the signal."

Behind her, she could hear Jool and Hirsh shift in preparation to move out quickly. Aeryn divided her attention between the cave entrance and the Marauder, trusting the others to follow orders as directed.

* * *

She made it! Once again Chiana had proven her stealth skills were above those of anyone else. Suppressing the triumphant giggle that was brewing inside, she quietly made her way to the pilot area, hearing a voice as she neared it. Either the pilot was talking to someone on comms or he was not alone. Chiana decided it was best to wait a little longer to determine just how many people were actually in the cockpit. The male voice spoke again.

"I just made another sensor sweep. The area is still clear."

"Make sure it stays that way."

The answer had not come from someone in the cockpit, but rather through the comms. Comms was good. Comms meant nobody there but one lonesome pilot. Chiana only needed to wait until the comms were closed again before taking out the pilot. That last thought made Chiana queasily eye the knife still stuck in her waistband. She still couldn't believe she had actually killed someone without a second thought. Sure, she had killed before, but not like this.

Chiana shook her head, trying to dispel these thoughts for now. She needed a clear head for this. Thinking and regrets could come later, when they were back on Moya. At last the comms were closed and Chiana immediately recognized the sound of someone standing up and taking a few steps. He was coming her way!

Chiana pressed herself against the separating wall between the pilot area and the main crew area she was in now. As soon as the pilot stepped past her, she shot him. Chiana edged closer to the fallen Peacekeeper, not certain he wasn't faking it. At the last possible moment, Chiana had adjusted her pulse pistol setting so she wouldn't kill him. Even so, her eyes had involuntarily closed when she squeezed the trigger.

Kicking the Peacekeeper hard in his sides did not elicit any reaction. Satisfied for the moment that he was indeed unconscious, she quickly moved to the cockpit and aligned the Marauder's weapons at the top of the cave entrance and fired. Seeing the cave ceiling crumbling and falling down, trapping the Peacekeepers inside, she returned to the unconscious pilot and dragged him to the boarding ramp. She unceremoniously dumped him out and hit the control to pull up the ramp and close the hatch.

* * *

Aeryn watched as the cave entrance collapsed. "Now, Jool!"

As Jool and Hirsch departed in haste, Aeryn sprang up and took care of the two sentinels she had spotted earlier. As she had expected, the two were distracted by the Marauder's firing and the subsequent collapsing of the cave entrance. The two fell to the ground before either had a chance to turn towards her.

Aeryn glanced to the Marauder and saw Chiana pushing the pilot out. Another glance tracked Jool and Hirsch making their way to their ship as fast as Hirsch could move. Aeryn quickly ran past them to make certain their cave was indeed empty.

Aeryn glanced around but didn't see anyone or anything. She heard the ship descend from the ceiling, indicating Jool or Hirsch had activated the mechanism. The ship didn't appear until it had touched down and the boarding ramp extended.

Jool started helping Hirsh up the ramp but turned around when she realized the Sebacean wasn't following them. "Are you coming, Aeryn?"

Aeryn shook her head. "No. I'll take one of the Prowlers." Aeryn took a comms out of her pocket and threw it to the Interion. "Here, take this. You'll be able to contact Chiana or me."

Jool nodded. "Thanks. I'll need a few microts to get the ship ready for flight, and then I'll follow you two." She turned back and headed into the ship.

Aeryn was heading for one of the Prowlers when her comms came to life.

"Aer?! You and the Princess still alive?"

"Yes, Chi, Jool and Hirsch have entered their ship and I'll be taking one of the Prowlers with me. You can take the Marauder."

"Sure, no problem."

Aeryn ran the last few motras to the Prowlers and to her joy she spotted one of the newer models. Now she _really_ didn't mind the Peacekeepers taking her Prowler. She quickly climbed in and started the power-up sequence. "Chi, Jool. Listen, the Peacekeepers trapped in the cave will have requested assistance by now, so be prepared to encounter other Prowlers and Marauders soon."

"Got it, Aer!"

Jool's reply was not the confirmation Aeryn expected. "Like D'Argo's ship, the weapons on mine can be operated even when shrouded. I should be able to extend the shroud to cover your Prowler. If we follow Chiana undetected..."

Aeryn engaged the engines at the same time as Chiana lifted the Marauder off the ground and nodded her understanding, finishing, "...we could take care of the Peacekeepers following her. As it appears to be only one Marauder, they will at most send three Prowlers in pursuit."

Jool piloted her ship out of the cave and flew just above Aeryn's Prowler. "Aeryn, you must remain within a motra of my ship, otherwise the shroud will not be able to cover you completely." Jool was confident that if she kept her vessel steady along its flight path, Aeryn was a skilled-enough pilot to match her course that closely.

"Alright, Jool, I'm ready. Chi?"

"No problem. I'll make sure they follow me out."

"Try to lure them away as far as possible. If they get the chance to inform the Carrier it would take them more time to get to our last known location." Aeryn paid close attention to Jool's ship and used the Prowler's navigational computer to maintain a constant distance between them.

Chiana shot up with her Marauder, followed closely by the now invisible Prowler and Interion ship. Just as she left the planet's atmosphere, she saw a group of Prowlers and Marauders heading towards the planet. Just as Aeryn had predicted, three Prowlers broke formation and headed her way.

Chiana increased her speed, knowing the Prowlers could outpace her. But the Prowlers were still rather far away, giving her more time to increase the distance between them and the Peacekeeper Command Carrier.

As the Prowlers were about to attack, Chiana veered to one side, making a sharp turn to take aim at the Prowlers. From behind the three Prowlers she saw Aeryn moving out of the shroud provided by Jool's ship. She immediately fired at one of the attacking ships. Chiana also fired at a Prowler, but missed it by just a fraction.

Aeryn took out the second Prowler and noticed Chiana had missed the third Prowler, which was now trying to get away from them. Aeryn realized the pilot would immediately communicate back to the Carrier, but the Prowler was already moving out of her range. "Chi, Jool, I cannot hit that Prowler. We must go _now_."

Aeryn had barely finished the sentence when the Prowler got caught in an explosion, immediately followed by a matter-of-fact statement over the comms.

"Did I forget to tell you this ship has shrouded mines for defenses?"

Jool's statement was answered by Chiana's giggle. "Yeah, but that's okay, Princess, seein' as you didn't forget to use them."

* * *

"Pilot? John? Are you there?"

John's voice was the first to come back over the comms. "Hey, babe. You do know you've got a Peacekeeper Marauder on your tail, right? Need some help?"

Before Aeryn had a chance to respond, Chiana's voice came over the comms. "Careful, I don't think D'Argo would like me gettin' shot, old man."

"Pip? You're flying the Marauder? Never mind that. We're sending you an updated map. Follow the specified course and you'll stay clear of the wormholes."

Aeryn frowned. "Were the previous maps inaccurate?"

She heard John sigh. "Yeah. We'll talk about it later. See ya in a bit."

* * *

As soon as Chiana had shut down the engine she sprinted to the hatch, too impatient to wait for the boarding ramp to extend. She jumped to the floor of Moya's transport bay, ran straight for D'Argo and leapt in to his arms.

Aeryn, just as eager as Chiana to get out of the Prowler and into the arms of her lover, bypassed most of the shutdown procedure. As Aeryn dropped down from the Prowler, John had already been waiting by the ladder for her. She only needed to turn around to kiss and embrace him.

"Hey, babe, missed ya."

Instead of answering, Aeryn kissed him again. "I missed you, too, John."

Chiana stopped kissing D'Argo to look at him. "Told ya I'd come back."

D'Argo nodded, smiling tenderly. "I am glad you did."

John looked past Aeryn to the new-looking Prowler. "So, traded in your ride, huh?"

Aeryn nodded and shrugged. "I wasn't given much of a choice. The Peacekeepers took mine and left this one behind."

Both D'Argo and John looked surprised and not a little worriedly at their respective lovers. "Peacekeepers?"

Chiana giggled. "Where did you expect we'd get a new Prowler and a Marauder from?"

"I don't know, maybe the Peacekeepers had left it behind after the unit was killed or something."

Aeryn shook her head. "John, you know Peacekeepers would never leave any equipment behind. If a unit doesn't survive a mission, another pilot is sent to retrieve the ship."

At that moment, the boarding ramp of Jool's ship descended and the hatch opened. Both John and D'Argo readied their weapons at the first sound of the ramp descending.

As Jool helped Hirsch down the ramp she noticed the two males pointing their guns at her. She smiled and rolled her eye. "You two never change, do you?" She walked further down helping Hirsch maintain his balance. "I'd love to talk to you, but first I need to take care of Hirsch."

John holstered Winona. "Hi, Jool. Sorry 'bout the gun pointin'. I'm workin' on it. Need any help?"

Jool nodded. "I could use help with getting Hirsch to the Medical Bay."

D'Argo looked at Chiana. "You went to Arnessk? You had to take care of a problem on Arnessk?"

Chiana glanced at Aeryn briefly before turning back to D'Argo. This was it, now D'Argo knew where she had gone, and he wouldn't be happy to learn why. "Yeah, I did. I took care of a problem that happened to be at Arnessk right now."

Yep. Not happy. "Your problem, or someone else's problem?"

Chiana glowered at him. "I took care of my friend's problem. You remember what a friend is, D'Argo?"

Aeryn looked at John. "John, I think you'd better go with Jool without me. I'll stay here." Aeryn saw his questioning gaze traveling from D'Argo and Chiana to back to her. "Please, John. I'll explain later." Aeryn could see John still had his doubts, but he graciously acceded to her request.

She watched John walk out of the docking bay before stalking directly to D'Argo. "What is the matter with you? You know what happened on Arnessk. You do not think it was something that needed to be taken care of?"

Chiana huffed, "No, he wouldn't. He asked his... _friend_ to go back to that tralk."

Aeryn looked at D'Argo in utter astonishment. "You... you asked him to do it again?"

D'Argo sighed guiltily. "Yes, I did. We had no other option if we wanted to escape from the Peacekeepers." He looked down. "But I admit none of us really put any thought into an alternative."

He sighed again and looked back at the two women. "John, the bioloid one, told me I shouldn't worry about it because it didn't happen to the real him."

Aeryn glared at him. "And you think that makes it alright? You send him back to her, knowing full well what it meant to him. Yes, this time it turned out to be the bioloid, but what if it had been the real John?"

D'Argo glared back at her. "You were not there! You don't know the situation we were in, so you have no right to tell me that I was wrong!"

Aeryn looked down, momentarily nonplussed. Not because she felt the Luxan was right, but more because he again reminded her that she had left them, left John, and it still hurt to hear it.

Seeing the effect D'Argo's words had on Aeryn, Chiana punched him on his arm. "Hey, I was there and _I_ tell you, you were wrong." She punched him again. "And you have no right to talk to Aeryn like that!"

D'Argo sighed. "Sorry, I should not have said that. Listen, the bioloid John specifically told me not feel guilty about it. Do you agree the bioloid basically handled himself the same way as the real John?"

Both Aeryn and Chiana nodded.

"Then this John would have told me the same. He would have forgiven me and I would have made the same promise I made to the bioloid. I would keep this from Aeryn as he asked, and deal with the tralk myself if I ever ran into her again."

He turned to Chiana. "I'm not angry because you risked your life to take revenge on Grayza, I'm angry because I can no longer keep my promise." He turned to Aeryn. "I know it was the wrong thing to do, and regardless of John's words, I do still feel guilty about the whole thing. But I cannot go back and change this."

Aeryn looked D'Argo in the eyes. "I know John would forgive you, but I am not sure I can, not now." She turned away from him and left the Docking Bay, determined to find John.

Chiana watched her leave. The hurt look on D'Argo's face was enough to dispel her own anger at him. She fully understood Aeryn's feelings, but she couldn't leave D'Argo now. He had been living with the guilt all along and she already had put things straight in her mind, allowing her to more easily forgive him for his mistake.

She grinned at him when he turned back to her. "Hey, wanna hear what we did to her?"


End file.
